The singer, who turned the world on its axis with his 1987 mega-hit Never Gonna Give You Up, has come out of a self-imposed retirement with a brand new studio album titled 50 – a number he just happens to be turning this year.

Astley is in the midst of a mini-tour of North America, which includes a date at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto Sunday.

Postmedia Network had a chance to talk to the ageless wonder, down the line from the Big Apple. He chatted about why he walked away from the music business, what he thought of being a viral sensation years later with the Rickroll, and returning to the top of the charts after three decades.

Off and on for a year or so. I had a couple of songs and ideas kicking around, and it took most of last year. I kind of felt it would be a nice thing to do to mark my 50th birthday.

You have your first No. 1 album in the U.K. in years. Are you surprised at the positive reaction is had gotten?

It's been pretty strange – it wasn't what any of us expected. It's been an amazing experience. There are various people that have said they admired the fact that I retired on my own terms – I walked away rather than letting myself get thrown out the back door. I made some choices in my late 20s that I think I'm glad I made, and I think it was the right thing to do. I don't regret one bit of it.

Does it feel like you can say "I told you so" to the naysayers that passed you off as a flash in the pan?

I just think that it's kind of nice that somebody that is a bit of an old boy manages to make a record in his home studio behind his kitchen. And then we had a No. 1 album – and there were some pretty big artists on the charts at the time. To see your name up there next to Adele and Sam Smith, and you kind of think, 'How the hell did that happen'?

And you were 21 when you last had a No. 1 album. How crazy was your life at that time compared to now?

I think the biggest difference is, in my everyday life, I'm not really famous. Back in the late '80s, it was just insane. It was inhuman, to be honest. I love a lot of it, because it was such an experience and it's hard to even remember that it happened to me some days because it was just dream like. It feels like a different life. I'm enjoying it in certain ways more now because I've got anonymity – I can still go to my local pub and get the drinks in.

What did you think of the whole Rockrolling phenomenon? Did it take you by surprise at the time?

Of course it did. How could it not? It's bizarre. It's weird. It's freaky. When it happened, the Internet was still finding its feet. YouTube wasn't the global monster that it is today. My daughter said to me at the time when she was 14, 'It's got nothing to do with you, don't take it to heart, just let it go.’ That's the best advice I ever got.

Do you think Never Gonna to Give You Up was a blessing and a curse?

I don't see it as a curse, to be honest. It's a blessing. I've been really lucky that I've had a couple of songs, one in particular obviously, that have been genuine, worldwide hits. I think that's an amazing thing.

So you obviously never get tired of playing it?

No, I never get tired of it. My enjoyment comes from seeing people loving it. It’s fun to sing because it’s one of those all or nothing songs – you can't do it light-heartedly; you have to go of it.

Most people are thinking about retirement at 50, and you are just coming out of it.

I was very lucky in a sense that when I was 27 I had made enough money to say, 'You know what, I don't need to work again.' I didn't retire because I made enough money; I retired because I didn't want to do it anymore. I wanted to be more of a family man and enjoy having a very nice, comfortable life. I’ve never fallen out of love with music, that's for sure. I don't think that's ever going to leave me.

Do you have any regrets?

No. I'm very happy where I am. I'm not saying everything is perfect, but life shouldn't be perfect because then you'd have nothing to strive for.